galacticsouth

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Hand of Isis

When I was two, we lived with my grandparents, and I am reliably informed that I used to terrify my 6'2" 250-pound grandfather by toddling up to him, holding out a kid's book (which he had read to me so many times already that he had it memorized), and saying, "Read it, Grampop! It's good!" I'll try not to do that to you all, but....

Jo Graham's Hand of Isis is out. If you've read her first novel, Black Ships, then you know the kind of writer you're dealing with: elegant, intelligent, and compelling. (And if you haven't read Black Ships, which is a version of the story of Aeneas, told from the point of view of Gull, who is Pythia and a seer.... Well, you should. It's an amazing novel.) Hand of Isis is the story of Cleopatra, told from the point of view of her half-sister and handmaiden Charmian, and it's wonderful - searing at times, tragic, and yet profoundly hopeful. Graham's grasp of period is fantastic, the characters are complex, and it's connected to Black Ships in ways that would be a spoiler to reveal.

About Me

A few key facts: I was born and raised in Arkansas, with a brief excursion to Mississippi when I was 2. I got my AB from Harvard and my PhD from Brandeis in comparative history. I've always loved SF, and have sold more than 20 SF and fantasy novels, including Trouble and Her Friends, Dreamships, and Point of Dreams, the last written with my late partner, Lisa Barnett.